George William Broderick O'Farrell (July 13, 1882 — September 2, 1955) was an American film and stage actor who appeared in both silent and sound films. He began his career at age 14, appearing onstage with the Baker Stock Company in his hometown of

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. He subsequently appeared in several locally produced films, such as '' The Golden Trail'' (1920), before pursuing a film career in Los Angeles. He appeared in numerous silent films throughout the 1920s, and later had minor roles in several

Laurel and Hardy Laurel and Hardy were a British-American double act, comedy duo during the early Classical Hollywood cinema, Classical Hollywood era of American cinema, consisting of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–1957) ...

films, including '' Beau Hunks'' (1931). O'Farrell had minor

bit part In acting, a bit part is a role in which there is direct interaction with the principal actors and no more than five lines of dialogue, often referred to as a five-or-less or under-five in the United States, or under sixes in British televisio ...

s throughout the 1940s, often appearing as conductors, doctors, and coroners in a variety of films. Some of his later credits include ''

Mourning Becomes Electra ''Mourning Becomes Electra'' is a play cycle written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. The play premiered on Broadway at the Guild Theatre on 26 October 1931 where it ran for 150 performances before closing in March 1932, starring Lee Ba ...

'' (1947), '' Whispering Smith'' (1948), and '' The Girl from Jones Beach'' (1949). He died in Los Angeles at age 73 from a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

Biography

O'Farrell was born July 13, 1882 in

, and where he was a regular performer with the Baker Stock Company beginning at age 14. He appeared in various stage productions in Portland and the Pacific Northwest, including theatrical productions in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

and

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

. He began his film career in 1920 during the

silent era A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, wh ...

, appearing in locally produced films such as the early serial short titled ''And Women Must Weep'', in which he appeared opposite

Mayo Methot Mayo Jane Methot (March 3, 1904 – June 9, 1951) was an American film and stage actress. She appeared in over 30 films, as well as in various Broadway theatre, Broadway productions, and attracted significant media attention for her tempestuous ...

. O'Farrell married Mae Norton in 1921, and had two children—a son, Kevin, and a daughter, Dawn—before separating. He went on to appear in numerous silent pictures, followed by sound films. He appeared in several

films in minor roles, including '' Beau Hunks'' (1931). He supporting roles in numerous films, including '' No More Orchids'' (1932) with

Carole Lombard Carole Lombard (born Jane Alice Peters; October 6, 1908 – January 16, 1942) was an American actress, particularly noted for her energetic, often off-beat roles in screwball comedies. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Lombard ...

, '' The World Accuses'' (1934), and the Western '' The Law of the 45's'' (1935). In the 1940s, O'Farrell primarily appeared in uncredited bit parts, being cast as butlers, coroners, and doctors. Some of his later credits include the film noir ''

Experiment Perilous ''Experiment Perilous'' is a 1944 American melodrama film set at the turn of the 20th century. The film is based on a 1943 novel of the same name by Margaret Seymour Carpenter, Margaret Carpenter, and directed by Jacques Tourneur. Albert S. D'Ago ...

'' (1944), starring

Hedy Lamarr Hedy Lamarr (; born Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler; November 9, 1914 January 19, 2000) was an Austrian-born American actress and inventor. After a brief early film career in Czechoslovakia, including the controversial erotic romantic drama '' Ecstasy ...

; the aviation adventure film ''

Blaze of Noon ''Blaze of Noon'' is a 1947 aviation adventure film directed by John Farrow and based on writer and aviator Ernest K. Gann's best-selling novel ''Blaze of Noon'' (1946), a story about early air mail operations. The screenplay was from well-known ...

'' (1946), and ''

'' (1947).

Death

O'Farrell died in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

on September 2, 1955, of complications from a

. He was survived by his two children, and his second wife, Loretta Fitzpatrick. He was interred at the

San Fernando Mission Cemetery The San Fernando Mission Cemetery, a significant part of the Mission Hills community in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, is steeped in history. It stands adjacent to the iconic San Fernando Mission, also known as Mission San Fernando Rey d ...

Select filmography

References

Sources

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External links

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Broderick O'Farrell
at

AFI Catalog of Feature Films The ''AFI Catalog of Feature Films'', also known as the ''AFI Catalog'', is an ongoing project by the American Film Institute (AFI) to catalog all commercially-made and theatrically exhibited American motion pictures from the birth of cinema i ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:O'Farrell, Broderick 1882 births 1955 deaths American male film actors American male stage actors Catholics from Oregon Male actors from Portland, Oregon